Day: February 19, 2023

Going soft

Published on by bushboy42 Comments

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #237: Bringing Softness

It’s fun bringing something new to a photograph. The software I use is Corel PaintShop Pro Ultimate 2023. I just hammered through these doing something different to my usual techniques to soften images. I alter a photo changing lightness, shadows, or mid-range tones, sometimes adding more black or white as well as saturation. Mostly then I use vignette as the first stop in softening an image.

This photo I used a function in the software – Soft Focus, which I haven’t used before.
I changed the amount of soft focus and edge hardness. Then set the Halo amount, size and visibility I bore you with meaningless numbers.
From a harsh morning sun through grass seeds to this.

A bee on a Zinnia. I seem to have quite a number of similar photos. Just using vignette and dark settings
Dark/Light into the negative numbers
Blur making sure the subject bee wasn’t out of focus
Diffuse Glow on low as well
Feather Edge just encroaching on the petal

The opposite with the Australian Painted Lady Butterfly. The original photo had the grass as well as the butterfly in focus. Firstly, I bought up the black and colour as it was a bit washed out.
I decided to try something new again. Selective Focus. It is in parallel band and can be moved in any direction.
First I ran the focus following the butterflies body and to the tip of the wings. Left and right hand sides now blurred.
Then did the same going horizontal, blurring the top and bottom of the photo.
Adding a vignette in a vague heart shape.

A very old street in Adelaide, Victorian terraces and a blue stone building which were a staple for stone buildings in the late 1800’s. A bright sunny day photo. I like the result of this photo. This was the first photo I played with and was just doing all sorts of things, deciding I didn’t like it and undid the changes.
Therefore no idea how I did this one, sorry

Well there you go. This is something I don’t usually do and I know why…..it’s exhausting! Hope it gave some insight into the process to get a desired result

Treasure – not buried, used

Published on by bushboy24 Comments

Weekly Prompts Weekend Challenge: Treasure

I have shared this treasure from my past before. When I saw the prompt, I closed my mind and thought of what is a treasure and more over, what is treasure to me and this box sprung to mind.

Something I value and hold quite close to my heart. Knowing that my grandfather made this box using the contents does make it feel special. Of course there are bigger tools that don’t fit in the box as well. This box was always in Dad’s workshop, which was grandfathers before that, and Dad was always showing me how to use the tools and helping me make stuff. I am the third generation to hold, feeling the past hands as I work with what I consider, my family treasure.

Let’s open it and have a look inside.

Yes, just a box of old tools. See on the right hand side, they are pipe clamps. The top is screwed onto a pipe and the bottom part you cab see slides up or down and the little trigger locks it in place. I used these when building my house only the pipes I used were almost three meters long. I would set out the wall frame, then gradually tighten the clamps and then I could nail everything together.

The rear left wrapped in one of grandmothers old lacy things, is a Spokeshave and is very sharp still. I use it every now and then and have never sharpened it. As grandfather was a Wheelwright, he made wagons, so he used the spokeshave to shape the spokes of the wheels.. The old tins, another of my collecting addiction, contained all sort if fine nails and pins, even a fish hook.

The drills. The one at the top I bought in a job lot at a clearing sale. The big brace and the canvas bag of bits. The drill bits go from quite small 1/4″ up to a 2″. These have a quite sharp tip. The big bit is poking out to show the sharp tip. At the lower part of the box are chisels but who can tell me what the silver looking pointy tool is among the chisels?

Although I do use grandfathers tools sometime, a lot of the time I am using the modern variety

Five Minutes Ago – 19 February

Published on by bushboy7 Comments

Hammad’s Weekend Sky #88

I am being more haphazard in my taking photos from the small deck. This morning I should have taken the early morning yellow sky but didn’t think until I saw Hammad had posted this morning (my time)

The sun is just through the trees with spreading clouds. As I write the cloud cover is almost 80%

As the rising sun colours the Eucalypts against a blue sky. This blue has now disappeared. The clouds moved in very quickly. I hope it may rain as the garden needs a good soak